


He Collected Me

by Avionic



Category: Free!
Genre: Angst, Family Problems, M/M, Self-Harm, Slow Burn, THERE IS TOO LITTLE SOUNAGI IN THIS WORLD, You Have Been Warned, just read it, trigger warning
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-01
Updated: 2016-03-01
Packaged: 2018-05-23 12:34:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,303
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6116647
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Avionic/pseuds/Avionic
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which one has an estranged father and the other is there to pick up the pieces of his broken heart.</p>
            </blockquote>





	He Collected Me

**Author's Note:**

> So this is based off Piece by Piece by Kelly Clarkson, such a wonderful song by a wonderful artist, you should listen to it while reading this.
> 
> Angst and Fluff and emotional stuff.

“Please don’t leave, don’t go to her!”

“Stay with us, we’re your family.”

All too young, and all too innocent, eyes too pure for the obscene, all he could remember was his father leaving him, his mother, and his sisters alone. He could do nothing to stop the tears from spilling over.

He runs to his father in a last attempt to make him stay.

“Papa!” He calls out grabbing onto the taller man’s arm.

But it’s only met with a tug and a light shove.

“Go away, Nagisa, I don’t need you.”

~*~*~*~

 “NAGISA-KUN!”

Rei’s yelling snaps Nagisa out of his trance.

“That’s the third time you’ve spaced out today! And we have a joint practice with Samezuka today! Are you feeling ok Nagisa-kun?”

“Mhmm. I was just thinking about something Rei-chan! Nothing to worry about!” Plastering on his signature cheerful smile.

But truth be told, he wasn’t alright. Nothing was okay. He hasn’t been okay since this day nine years ago. Melancholic, he thinks, how he knows it’s been so long ago, but the memories are still burned into his mind.

“I was only six.” Nagisa whispers to himself, half smiling, half frowning.

“What was that Nagisa-kun?”

“Nothing, Rei-chan. Let’s head off to meet the others for practice.” Nagisa says, flashing his biggest smile.

~*~*~*~

It’s quite a warm afternoon to say the least, especially during December; Nagisa thinks as he stares out the train’s window, eyes trailing the sun glaring above the horizon, and he’s not paying attention to Rei who’s talking to Haru-chan, and Mako-chan, going on about some theory he read about making the perfect dive or something along those lines.

In fact his mind is elsewhere.

But blessing shines upon Samezuka’s kindness, well specifically Rin’s kindness since it was his call as the team captain to allow them to have a joint practice and subsequently use the pool.

Nagisa thinks they’ve come a long way from last year. Especially in regards to where their relationship stood with Rin. They’ve been saved, Haru would say. The fire that was their relationship was rekindled, and they have Rei to thank for that really. If it wasn’t for his actions and selflessness, then he really wouldn’t know where to pick up the pieces of a lost friend.

Nagisa turns his head to face Rei, with just a tiny bit of admiration.

“… So if your angle would be at 45 degrees just a little over the edge of the board you would enter the water further at minimal resistance and…” Rei babbles.

“Bless you.” Nagisa whispers, smiling at the boy with glasses.

“Something on your mind?” Nagisa turns to face Gou.

Nagisa shakes his head in response. “ Just thinking.”

“You’re looking at Rei like it’s the last time you’re going to see him.. are you in love with him?” Gou nudges Nagisa’s side feigning astonishment to add a comical effect.

“No! I’m just thankful.”

“For what?”

“That we have Rin-chan back.”

A tint of red highlights Gou’s cheeks.

“It’s all thanks to Rei.” Gou says. “It’s such a shame that you two couldn’t work out.”

Now it’s Nagisa’s turn to be surprised, because really when did Gou know that he and Rei were a thing?

“You knew?” Nagisa says with just a hint of embarrassment hidden in his voice.

“Of course I knew. As your team manager, it’s my duty to know whatever is going on with you guys, I have to keep you all in top shape for the competitions, you know!”

“But it’s okay, you don’t have to talk about it, I don’t want you to open up old wounds.” Nagisa instinctively pulls down his left sleeve at that.

And Nagisa’s thankful that Gou, though admittedly quite pushy, is still understanding and in the end, like her brother, reliable.

~*~*~*~

It really didn’t take a scientist to figure out the Rei was seeing someone else the entire time he was with him. Always having an errand to run, saying that he was always busy. So he wasn’t surprised when Rei broke the news that he was in love with someone else.

It’s not that it didn’t hurt, it did, but he was used to getting left behind anyway.

He wasn’t even surprised that it was Rin who held Rei’s heart captive, because who ever had Rei would be lucky, and besides it made sense. Rin saw Rei as a savior; he did after all save Haru and Rin from falling apart.

“Maybe one day, I’ll have my savior.” Nagisa thinks as the train halts at their station.

~*~*~*~

Nagisa will never get over Samezuka’s insanely huge campus. Trees line the cobblestone path to the gym which houses the indoor pool. It was the kind of school that you dreamed of attending, like a Japanese Ivy League as Rei had once described it. Expensive and highly prestigious.

But Nagisa can understand the basis for expensive as he enters the indoor pool, the high tech equipment and the Olympic sized pool staring at them just begging to be used. The swimmers who’s bodies looked as if they’ve been training for decades. Nagisa definitely agrees that the money for tuition was put to good use.

Rin walks over to the Iwatobi boys, but even before he could say his greetings, is immediately attacked by Gou, who is ever so happy to see her elder brother.

“Oniiiiiii-chaaaaaaaaaaaaaan!” Gou screams, attacking her brother with a hug so strong, it nearly sends both of them flying into the pool.

“Geez Gou, you really need to moderate the hugs.”

Gou just grins at that as Rin makes his way to greet the Iwatobi boys.

“Rin-chan!” Nagisa goes over to hug Rin.

“Thanks for letting us use the pool during the winter. We haven’t got much swimming, since our own pool is almost freezing over.” Nagisa makes a pout at that.

“Thanks Rin, we really owe you one.” Makoto adds.

“It’s nothing really. It’s the least I could do for you guys.” Rin says, winking at Rei.

If Rin thinks that went unnoticed, then he must be dreaming since Nagisa definitely caught that, and he definitely caught Rei blushing as well. “Love birds” He thought.

~*~*~*~

Nagisa’s body is terrifyingly exhausted because Samezuka’s training regimen is probably, no scratch that, is the most strenuous training regimen in the world, because never in his life did he ever have to swim one kilometer in twenty minutes, twice, and in succession.

“Haru-chan is so lucky he never gets tired!” Nagisa calls out from the sidelines, watching Haru swim effortless laps through the pool.

“I just love the water.” Haru says, brushing it off, continuing his swimming.

Nagisa chuckles at that.

Nagisa further retreats to a cozy spot near the windows and lays down; his mind wandering off to this day nine years ago. Memories are replaying like a broken record, further burning itself into his mind.

Nagisa finds it funny that he still wishes to get his father’s love and acceptance. He was so desperate that he even worked so hard when he was thirteen to save money to be able to buy a plane ticket to travel one thousand five hundred kilometers to Sapporo just to visit his father, after he found out where he lived.

But as much as he wanted an emotional reconnection, where he would run into his father’s arms, and he would say he loved him, and he would say sorry and he would come home, and everything would be alright, life wasn’t a movie.

He got the exact opposite.

An angered father going “what the hell are you doing here” and a “you aren’t welcome here” greeted him as the door was opened and all to quickly shut in his face.

“I don’t need you.” Were the final last words said before the door was locked on him.

He remembers the scolding, he got when he returned home. How his mother went hysterical at him for just disappearing.

Nagisa decided that is was for the best that his mother never knows what happen.

Nagisa was snapped out of his thoughts when a rather large presence sat beside him.

“You’re not going to win, by just laying around, Hazuki.” Sousuke grunts but it isn’t disdainful, mocking, or bland but rather playful.

“Oh, Sou-chan!” Nagisa snaps up to smile at him.

“Just call me Nagisa, Sou-chan!”

Sousuke just looks puzzled at that, but he does try his best to conceal the heat rising to his cheeks, because Nagisa looks absolutely cute lying down, not that Sousuke would ever admit that to himself.

“Why are you even lying down? You look like you’re spaced out.”

Nagisa looks down, with a little bit of sadness, and a little bit of embarrassment painting his face.

“Nothing.” Nagisa says as he leaves Sousuke and resumes his practice.

~*~*~*~

Sousuke was the kind of person to be tolerant of a lot of things. Some people would call it indifference. Some people would call him Stoic, but in reality Sousuke was just tolerant.

Sousuke was always protective of his friends, and though he may appear this way, scary and brooding, and at times intimidating even, Sousuke was a huge softie,a gentle giant, at least when unprovoked.

Perhaps it’s because of this that he finds his thoughts drifting to the solemn expression of Iwatobi’s supposedly most cheerful member.

“Oi, Sousuke, What are you thinking about?” Sousuke turns over from where he’s lying to look at Rin.

“Nothing.” Rin shakes his head. “If it was nothing, you wouldn’t look so worked out about it.” Sousuke curses Rin for knowing him so well.

“Do you trust me that little, that you can’t even tell me what’s bothering you?” Sousuke sits up to face RIn. “Come on Sousuke, it’s not like I’ll judge you.”

“Recall our joint practice four days ago?” Rin nods. “Well something was off about Nagisa, he looked like he was lost, he just looked so… so lonely.”

“I didn’t notice anything about him; he seemed like his usual happy, cheerful, annoying self.” Rin says looking confused, trying to recall if he did see anything off about his blonde friend, but can’t quite seem to exact anything.

Sousuke chuckles lightly. “Well you wouldn’t notice anything because you were too busy making sweet faces with that nerdy boyfriend of yours.” Rin blushes angrily at that. “What are you on about!?” Sousuke laughs at Rin’s reaction. “But I really don’t remember anything in particular about Nagisa’s mood that day.”

“Why the sudden interest in Nagisa anyway?”

Perhaps it was the sound of the wind softly blowing against the window, or the mellow creaking of the floor board, or maybe even just Sousuke’s failure to answer Rin’s question that ended the conversation.

But Sousuke’s mind is already a swarm of thoughts, plus he already has problems of his own with his shoulder, couple that with the fact that he can’t even tell Rin, who’s supposedly his best friend, about his tragic state.

And maybe it’s his thoughts or exhaustion from practice, but probably both that put him to sleep that night.

~*~*~*~

Between that night and 2 months on, Nagisa runs away from home, for what seemed like the nth time.

He’s sat on Haru’s porch with the same bothered expression he’s had plastered on for the past two days. And he feels bad that he’s lying to his friends, and has gotten them all worried. But he can’t find it in himself to tell them the truth either.

And maybe it’s when they ran to the swim club and when Ama-chan sensei revealed herself from the other end of the door, that he feels he should maybe go home.

But he doesn’t.

Instead he goes back with Haru to his house and asks that he be allowed to leave his stuff there, saying that he’s too tired to bring everything home. Even if Haru had politely offered to carry his stuff home with him, and Nagisa is thankful really, but he just says he’ll pass by tomorrow on his way to school to get them.

He leaves Haru’s house and walks to a certain park that’s somewhere in between the distances of Samezuka, Iwatobi, and Haru-chan and Mako-chan’s neighborhood. He walks up to a tree on the far corner of the area, near a trail that leads up to a forest and sits down.

And Nagisa can’t remember but for what feels like the nth time this week, he cries.

Because how could he show up again, how could he show up just to threaten them?

Nagisa had probably underestimated his father. If he thought he was cruel then, he was definitely heartless now. The venom that dripped from the vicious words his father had spewed at them was burning at the back of his mind.

He tugs back on his left sleeve and looks at his damage. Ten new cuts adore his wrist, and he thinks this is what he’s come to. His sadness had finally reflected on his body and he feels pathetic.

“Maybe that’s why he left, because I was pathetic.”

And Nagisa is full on sobbing now, because he’s too weak and too tired to fight his sadness anymore, so he just sits under the tree and lets everything out.

~*~*~*~

It’s a little after three in the morning, and Sousuke finds that he can’t go back to sleep. But it’s a cool morning and the outside air is so inviting.

He decides to go for a jog.

He heads over to a park that’s quite scenic. It’s surrounded by nature and there’s a forest trail that leads up to a nice view of the harbor.

Sousuke runs to take his mind off a lot of things, but Sousuke knows that he can’t hide his condition from everyone forever. But for now he needs to, if he wants to continue swimming with Rin, and as petty as it is to be chasing the remnants of a broken dream, he has to, for his sake. Rin would say that he shouldn’t crush his own potential without first trying.

His path takes him close to the trail, and for a while he wonders if he should go up and have a view of the harbor, but he’s getting quite tired and he thinks that he should rest.

His eyes settle on the big tree by the start of the trail as he walks closer to it.

He didn’t expect to find Nagisa sitting down on the other side of it.

And he most definitely did not expect him to be crying.

And Sousuke’s heart swells up as he sees the face of the lonely boy. This is a totally different side of the cheerful blonde that’s been exposed to him. Solemn, lost, hopeless, and broken, and it’s a side that Sousuke never wants to see again.

Sousuke removes his jacket and places it over Nagisa shoulders.

Nagisa jumps a bit, startled. “Sou-chan!” Nagisa squeals, rushing to wipe away his tears.

“What are you doing here so late Nagisa, and more importantly why are you crying?” Sousuke questions as he sits down and puts an arm around Nagisa.

Nagisa was slightly uncomfortable at first but eventually leans into the touch. “It’s nothing Sou-chan.” “If it was nothing, then you wouldn’t be here too early in the morning, crying. Do your parents even know you’re he—““I ran away.” A look of surprise was plastered over Sousuke’s face as Nagisa rests his head on Sousuke’s shoulder.

“Why did you do that?” Sousuke says astonished.

Nagisa looks down at his shoes. He’s stopped sobbing now. Sousuke sighs. “If it makes you uncomfortable, then you don’t have to tell me about it.” Nagisa nods his head.

“No. It’s fine, I‘ll tell you.” Sousuke nods.

“I don’t have the best home life, Sou-chan.” “My parents were always fighting and my sisters would always bully me, and though the latter mostly died down, the fighting never did.”

“So nine years ago when I was six, my mother found out about my father having an affair and my parents finally had a falling out. I can’t say I wasn’t expecting it, because I was. They had this really huge argument and it got really nasty. But ultimately my mother begged him to stay, even though it was obvious he didn’t want to.” Nagisa grasps onto Sousuke’s hand and says;

“I thought that maybe if it were me, he would stay. So I tried. I ran up to him and begged him to stay, but he pushed me away. He said that he didn’t need me, that he didn’t love me.”

“I don’t know why but even if he made it obvious that he wanted nothing to do with me, I still begged for him to want me. I even went as far as tracking him down in Sapporo and paying him a visit.” Nagisa wills his tears not to spill over.

“I was so naïve and stupid. I couldn’t see that what I was trying to achieve was stupid and pointless. I just thought that maybe, there was still some chance that he would take me back.”

Sousuke nods sympathetically.

“I thought that was it, that it was over, but I was wrong. Two days ago he came here to threaten us about our house being his, even though it was inherited from my mother’s parents. It was just another one of his plays to try and scam money out of us. There was a really huge fight and I just couldn’t handle it so I ran.”

“And now I’m here. Pathetic aren’t I?” Sousuke wipes a stray tear from Nagisa’s cheek.

“I’m sorry.” Sousuke squeezes Nagisa’s hand that’s still under his.

“Ne Sou-chan. It’s fine.” Nagisa does his best to smile at him.

They sit there comfortably enjoying the silence and Nagisa is thankful that he’s able to get even just a little bit of the anguish of his chest.

“What about you Sou-chan, why are you here so late?” Nagisa yawns, rubbing his eyes as he waits for Sousuke to reply.

Sousuke lightly scratches the back of his head. “I was jogging.”

“At this hour?”

“Yeah, at this hour.” Nagisa notices the other’s distant expression and he knows it’s best to leave it at that.

“So what are you going to do now?”

“Probably go home. It’s not like I have anywhere else to go.”

Nagisa stands up from where he was sitting and dusts of the dirt from his clothes.

And Nagisa goes over to kiss Sousuke’s cheek. “Thank you Sou-chan, you really made me feel better.”

A faint blush painted Sousuke’s cheeks, and if you were there and saw it. It was probably something he would never admit to.

As Nagisa tucks himself under the covers of his blanket that night, he closes his eyes and lets his mind travel to a certain black haired, teal-eyed boy from a rival swim team, and maybe, just maybe, he would set everything right.

~*~*~*~

It’s been three weeks since Sousuke encountered Nagisa at the scenic park with the big, tall tree, and Sousuke is falling. Hard. He knows he is, because he finds himself constantly thinking about him, and he can’t sleep unless he’s sure that’s he’s okay, which he has no way of knowing since he doesn’t have Nagisa number or contact information.

“Sousuke.” Sousuke looks up at Rin who’s looking at him as he eats a strawberry cookie.

Rin walks around to sit next to Sousuke. “You spaced out on me again. I was asking you if you’re coming to practice later. Regionals is next week and we need to work on our exchanges for the medley relay.” Rin slumps down on the mattress.

“I have something to do today, sorry.” Sousuke looks away, looking apologetic, feeling guilty that he can’t tell Rin the truth.

Rin paces the room, trying not to make much of what Sousuke just told him. “Ok, fine, but these next few days, I’m not letting you miss practice.” Rin sighs.

~*~*~*~

Sousuke’s coming back from his physical therapy and his shoulder isn’t really feeling like new, although it is starting to get better, but not by much. It’s all too clear for him that the only solution is surgery. But he can’t do that just yet. He needs to hold it out just a little bit longer if he wants to swim with Rin at the relay.

“Just a little bit longer.” Sousuke thinks as he huffs a bit, making his way to the train station.

Just as he’s about to enter the train station, a familiar blonde steps out of the convenience store door.

“Nagisa?” Sousuke calls out to get the blonde’s attention.

“Sou-chan.” Nagisa replies, eyes downcast, trying hard to hide his embarrassment as memories from three weeks ago replay in his mind.

Sousuke’s trying his best not to make things awkward between them making small talk here and there, but it’s best not to dodge the question on his mind. “How are you feeling?”

Nagisa looks up and locks eyes with Sousuke, and smiles brightly up at him. “I’m feeling much better, Sou-chan, thanks for asking.” Nagisa replies.

“Ne Sou-chan, do you want to get something to eat?” Nagisa looks at Sousuke eyes hopeful.

Sousuke tries his best to stop the blush from creeping up on his cheeks but he fails, quite miserably, one at which Nagisa notices much to Sousuke’s dismay, because well, “He’s just asking you if you want come with him to eat, not a date.” Sousuke thinks.

“Sou-chan’s adorable when he smiles.” Nagisa says as he pokes Sousuke’s cheeks, earning a low grunt from Sousuke in reply.

“Whatever.”

~*~*~*~

Nagisa tried fiddling with his thumbs, to try and mask the nerves, but he knows that Sousuke can see right through him, so he tries biting on his straw, but finds that it proves nothing in calming down his nerves.

Sousuke moves the milk shake glass away from Nagisa in fear that he’d end up eating the straw at the rate he’s going. “Don’t be so nervous around me.”

“I just wanted to say thank you” Nagisa makes a feeble attempt to lock eyes with Sousuke. “For that night.” Nagisa finds that his voice has run soft, no trace of the usual boisterous boy that exists within him.

Sousuke chuckles. But it isn’t mocking or demeaning, no. It’s warm and it’s light and it sends shivers running down Nagisa’s spine.

And really Nagisa can’t contain the feelings in his heart to himself anymore.

And like most of the times Nagisa speaks, he fails to filter out his words and just lets them tumble down. “I really like Sou-chan.” And Sousuke looks at him with wide teal eyes and finds that his cheeks are pulling the corner of his lips upwards.

Nagisa just keeps on rambling but Sousuke’s at a loss for words, because he’s been at a loss for words lately, but he doesn’t mind it this time because he’s grinning like a fool, and maybe it’s his instinct or maybe it’s just mania, but Sousuke brings himself over the table and leans in closer to Nagisa.

He reaches his hands out to cradle Nagisa’s neck.

He kisses him, and it makes both their hearts flutter and dance in joy, and Sousuke finds that Nagisa tastes sweet, and he finds that his kiss is sweet, and it’s innocent, and Sousuke likes that.

Sousuke feels bad for breaking the kiss first, but they would have probably been kicked out for some form of public indecency had they continued.

Sousuke sits back down and smiles at the smaller boy, who’s smiling back at him full of admiration. And if only for a second longer, Nagisa’s smile would last, would it send Sousuke over the edge.

But that smile did not last longer. Slowly Sousuke could see that Nagisa was starting to frown, and a solemn expression has washed over the blonde’s face, and Sousuke’s mind races with “what ifs” and “did I do something wrong”.

Nagisa recovers his voice somewhere from the bottom of his throat and though he finds it hard to swallow the lump that has made itself known. Nagisa speaks.

“I’ve been hurt before Sou-chan.” Eyes getting glassy as his breath hitches, doing his best not to cry.

Nagisa stands up and walks over to where Sousuke is sitting. “If I give you my heart, my love, and my soul, will you promise me that you’ll take care of it, that you’ll take care of me?” Nagisa places his hands in the palms of Sousuke’s and continues “Because I don’t want to hurt anymore. Sou-chan. Will you promise me that you’ll love me?”

Sousuke looks up at Nagisa and looks into his eyes and in that moment understands completely that there is so much more to the blonde’s cheerful demeanor, and Sousuke wants to unravel every piece of him.

“I promise.” Sousuke wipes away a stray tear and lets Nagisa fall into his arms and envelopes him completely, letting him around his arms.

Nagisa closes his eyes, embraces the warmth and inhales deeply. “Okay.”

~*~*~*~

This is the day that Nagisa has been waiting for, the day that they have been practicing so hard for. He’s not so much disappointed that he didn’t break through regionals for his breaststroke times but he is extremely ecstatic that all of them are finally going to give it their all at the medley relay.

Nagisa cheers on Haru, he’s not holding back. He’s exerting as much effort as he can yelling and cheering on his best friend, as his best friend’s swimming. The others are following suit, Mako-chan and Rei-chan are yelling with him and he’s completely in bliss.

Haru touches the end of the pool and the race is over, they rush over to help Haru up and Nagisa can’t hold back his tears of joy. “Haru-chan! We did it!”, and he clings to Haru and hugs him and the others join in and Nagisa can say that this is one of the best days of his existence.

And no, they didn’t win, but they were definitely each other’s winner.

They’re being given the signal to exit the pool area and head on into the showers and so they walk together talking about the highlights of their race and all the sights they’ve never seen before.

~*~*~*~

They’re walking out of the shower room, and heading through the maze of a hall, and all Nagisa can think of is that he feels like he’s forgetting something.

How silly of him. Amidst the bliss over the breathtaking sights and fulfillment of the day, he’s forgotten how to keep his things in check. He’s forgotten his penguin towel in the locker room.

“Ne, guys. I may have forgotten my towel in the locker room.” Nagisa offers a shy smile, and scratches the back of his head.

The boys take a moment to look at him with the look that means to say, “Seriously?”

“Do you want us to come back with you to get it?” Makoto offers.

“It’s Mako-chan, I’ll be really quick.”

Nagisa runs back down the maze of a hallway and into the locker room to retrieve his towel amidst the questioning looks of the others in the room and proceeds to make his way back to holding area.

But as Nagisa walks back down the path to where his friends are waiting, he stops dead in his tracks.

Because a figure looming in the shadows has revealed himself, and Nagisa knows his face all too well. The pink eyes, the fair complexion, the thick brows, and the messy brown hair, and the light stubble on his chin, he’s memorized his features like the palm of his hand.

And Nagisa’s eyes are carrying a shocked expression.

What was his father doing here?

“After all these years and you’ve still amounted to nothing.” The man speaks as he inches closer to Nagisa.

“What are you doing here?” Nagisa curses himself for looking so weak, and for his voice sounding so small and frail.

The older man sighs. “I came here to maybe see if you were something that was worth taking back, but I see that my choice of abandoning you was the best thing to do.” He smiles a mischievous smile.

Nagisa can feel the tears pricking at his eyes, and they’re threatening to spill over.

“When will you realize, that you will never amount to anything Nagisa, that you will never achieve your dreams, that you will forever remain worthless.” The man spits.

And Nagisa curses himself for being so weak, for being at a loss for words, that he can’t even defend himself right now, that his tears are cascading like waterfalls.

“But he isn’t worthless.”

And both their heads snap up to meet the eyes of a raven haired boy who’s mind was once filled with dreams of his own.

“Who are you?”

Sousuke walks up to Nagisa and wraps his arm protectively around the small Blonde. “Someone who loves him more than you ever will.”

“Are you really that pathetic, that your little boyfriend here has to stand up for you?”

Sousuke loses it, he’s had enough of the one he cares most about being brutally abused. With all his anger and pent up frustration, he lunges at the man and shoves him up against the wall, and this catches the man off guard. Sousuke can see the fear he’s instilled in the man’s eyes.

“You listen to me. Stay the hell away from Nagisa, because I don’t mind completely destroying my shoulder a thousand times over, if it means protecting him.”

Nagisa’s shoots Sousuke a shocked glance. “Sou-chan’s shoulder is wrecked? Is that what he was trying to get off his mind by jogging?” Nagisa thinks.

Sousuke releases his grip of the man and watches as he scoffs and walks away. Sousuke has returned to Nagisa’s side now, protective as ever.

“You’ll get tired of him.”

“I won’t, because I’ll love him until I can fix him.” Sousuke locks eyes with Nagisa and offers him a small kiss. “I’ll take care of him, and he’ll never have to wonder his worth with me, because unlike you, I’m going to put him first.” Nagisa smiles.

The man’s eyes flicker from embarrassed to angry and moves to say something, but decides not to, with one last shrug against them, the man retreats and exits.

“Are you all right, Nagisa?” Sousuke questions.

“I am now Sou-chan.” Nagisa pecks his cheek.

“I’m sorry I just appeared out of nowhere. I could overhear the insults, so I went to take a look.” Sousuke explains.

“I’m happy it was you.” Nagisa pecks Sousuke’s cheek, and really Sousuke can’t contain his love for this one any longer. So he cups that blonde’s cheek and guides his other hand to the small of his back and plants one on him.

And it’s neither lustful nor taunting, but it’s sweet and assuring and Nagisa decides that it’s his favourite kind of kiss.

“Did you really mean what you said about me Sou-chan?”

“Every single word, Nagisa.”

Nagisa smiles at him, a big grin, that Sousuke will never grow tired of.

It’s in this moment that Nagisa feels complete, that he’s finally found his savior. He’s got his trust in him and that’s that.

“So what now?” Nagisa questions.

“Well now, you’re mine.”

Sousuke sweeps Nagisa off his feet and kisses him again.

Nagisa laughs and tells Sousuke that he loves kissing him, and Sousuke thinks “Yeah, I really love this one.”

And there’s really nothing more to say than a certain raven-haired boy has saved the day.

And the only remaining thought really belongs to the Iwatobi boys.

“What’s taking Nagisa so long to get his towel?”

If they only knew…

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading my shit writing, you guys are the best.
> 
> Also have a sugar sweet ending just because I can.
> 
> you can bug me on my tumblr: theeccentricflyer.tumblr.com


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